Nancy Collins

There’s something about seeing a hummingbird that gets people all excited. If this sort of thing results from seeing just one or two of these amazing little birds, imagine the pure joy of seeing many more in your yard. Here’s how that can happen:

Put up more than one feeder

First, there should be enough spots for hummingbirds to sip nectar without waiting in line. Put up enough feeders for the number of hummingbirds you could have, not just the number that you have today. Sometimes, a “bully” tries to scare others away. If you have enough feeding places available, however, the bully is outmaneuvered — less-aggressive ones will like hanging out in your yard.

Keep nectar fresh

Fresh nectar attracts them, and stale or moldy nectar repels them. If they get a sip of stale nectar at your house, they won’t return or bring fledglings or friends by. Nectar gets stale quickly on a super-hot Texas day. We change nectar every six or seven days during spring and fall. But when it’s really hot, we’ll change it every other day. Adding food coloring has never been proven to work, and may hasten nectar’s staleness by introducing microscopic bits of mold.

Plant hummer plants

Hummingbirds look for nectar from flowers in addition to feeders. All plants produce nectar, but some plants have a lot sweeter nectar than others. These give “more bang for the buck” in the form of energy for the hummingbird. They know this and are drawn to these plants — as are butterflies — and they encourage their youngsters to feed there.

Water source

Just like humans, hummingbirds need something to drink with meals. Clean water is ideal. Water from a hose-run dripper or mister on a birdbath is ideal, but a dripping faucet also works. They’ll use it to drink, to bathe and just to play in. Make sure a birdbath is shallow enough — 1.5 inches for small birds — since, like many humans, they avoid deep water.

Follow these guidelines and it’s a safe bet the number of hummingbirds in your yard will grow. The main reason is that the parents almost always bring youngsters back to eat, bathe, etc., where they were raised. That could be your yard, assuming it’s a healthy, safe environment.

Nancy Collins is a Denton resident, a Master Naturalist and co-owner of Denton’s Wild Bird Center. She is an avid watcher and feeder of wild birds (and a few squirrels), a member of the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council, National Wildlife Federation, the National Wildlife Rehabilitators’ Associ­ation and Native Plant Society of Texas. She can be reached by calling 940-484-BIRD (2473) or by e-mailing denton@wildbird.com .